Masato Kageura/Plot
Background Kageura is the second son of an owner of an okonomiyaki restaurant.Volume 13 Character Profiles He joined Border approximately three years before Chika Amatori and Yūma Kuga. He came to a mutual understanding with Hiro Kitazoe after eight rounds of solo battle. At some point Kageura Unit was formed and climbed to A-rank no. 6, but it was demoted when Kageura threw an uppercut at Eizō Netsuki. That or similar incidents resulted in a deduction of 8000 points. Introduction Arc Kageura Unit presumably takes part in the extermination of all Rads in Mikado City. Large-Scale Invasion Arc Due to Masafumi Shinoda preventing B-rank units with missing members from fighting against Aftokrator's forces out of fear of capture, Kageura Unit was not deployed. B-Rank Rank Battles Arc Round Two Since Azuma Unit, Katori Unit, Ōji Unit and Yuba Unit compete in a four-way rank battle in the day division on February 5, and Ikoma Unit and Ninomiya Unit are known to have clashed on that day, Kageura Unit presumably faces off against them in the night division. Round Four Upon hearing that Tamakoma Second is due to fight Kageura Unit next, Kō Murakami arranges for Yūma to meet Kageura. As Kageura waits for him in the solo rank battles hall, two trainees begin to badmouth him telepathically, which he picks up on thanks to his Side Effect. He calls them out and decides to let them off the hook, but when they resume mocking him, he beheads them faster than they can process, forcing them to revert to their normal bodies. When they protest that he will be demoted again, he counters that they did not see him do anything. Just then, he spots Murakami and Yūma. While Murakami sets the trainees running, Kageura growls at the other trainees staring at him. Murakami and Kageura discuss the incident for a few moments before Yūma steps in. The notion of the short, younger-looking boy defeating Murakami amuses Kageura, who then proceeds to try to rile Yūma up. The latter's nonchalance, however, surprises him, and Kageura decides to leave without sparring, stating that he has no obligation to give his future opponent any information. The attack on the two trainees causes him to lose an additional 2000 points. On February 11 Kageura watches the logs of Yūma's battles against Murakami and Tetsuji Arafune, prompting his teammates to comment on the rarity of the occurrence. Four days later, during the night division of rank battles, the match opposing Kageura Unit, Ninomiya Unit, Azuma Unit and Tamakoma Second begins in a snowy Cityscape B. Kageura spawns to the south of the stage and proceeds to target Yūma. Hikari Nire tells him to score some points, but he retorts that he will fight the ace of Tamakoma Second first. Thanks to Shinnosuke Tsuji delaying the latter, Kageura is able to cross blades with him, preventing him from going to Osamu Mikumo's rescue. Yūma eventually manages to disengage to cover Chika. Kageura follows him and finishes off Sumiharu Inukai after Yuzuru Ema injures him, allowing Chika to bail out on her own. The Attackers of all four teams are now in the same place, and a battle royale begins. Lacking Grasshopper, Kageura is unable to reach Yūma and the two Attackers of Azuma Unit. He calls for Kitazoe's help, but Haruaki Azuma intercepts the bullets. However, the Gunner manages to get off a few shots before being taken out by Masataka Ninomiya. Tsuneyuki Okudera is launched towards Kageura, who cuts him to shreds. With Yūma defeating Noboru Koarai and Azuma sniping Tsuji, Kageura can resume his duel against Yūma, but Ninomiya soon interrupts them with a Full Attack Hound bombardment. As the Shooter closes in, Yūma attempts to attack him, only for Ninomiya to force him to bail out before his Mantis can reach him. Kageura is surprised to see Yūma mimic his technique. A dejected Kageura is forced to hide as Ninomiya does the same, lest they be taken out by Azuma. Eventually, time runs out and Kageura Unit ties in second place with Azuma Unit. Galopoula's Blitz After the match, Kageura and Yūma decide to meet up to compete in solo rank battles. Kageura arrives first and waits for Yūma, who is late. After a few minutes he goes looking for him and finds him in a hallway talking to Kuniharu Kakizaki and Nozomi Kako. Kageura and she begin pulling at Yūma as the one wants to fight him, the other to recruit him. However, neither gets his way as Osamu calls him. Round Five On February 19, the night of Galopoula's blitz, Kageura Unit fights a rank battle against Azuma Unit and Yuba Unit. Round Six Kageura Unit fights against Ninomiya Unit, Azuma Unit and Suzunari First in the night division of the sixth round of rank battles. During the battle, Kageura pulls off a sneak attack on Ninomiya and the two take each other out. Kageura Unit and Ninomiya Unit tie at the top with three points. No unit receives the survival bonus due to there being multiple survivors. Following the match, Kageura Unit remains in second place with a point total of 34. Round Seven Four days after the blitz Kageura, Murakami and Yūma spar together before hanging out with Ema, Kitazoe and Isami Tōma at Kageura's family's restaurant. When his friends remark that he has taken a liking to Yūma, he explains that he is the only person other than Azuma not to trigger his Side Effect, which makes their fights more thrilling. He then reveals that Ema has a crush on Chika and that the Sniper plans to throw the next match so that Tamakoma Second can join the upcoming expedition to the Neighborhood. After Arafune convinces Ema not to give Tamakoma Second the win, the two tables discuss the possibility of a penalty, and Kageura is lost when they mention Chika's inability to shoot others. Nire arrives shortly afterward, with Kageura telling her that she missed the meal. Over the next few days, Kageura sneaks glances at his teammates as they watch the logs in preparation of their match against Tamakoma Second, Azuma Unit and Suzunari First on March 1. On the day of the match, Kageura is befuddled by Tamakoma Second's addition of a new fighter. He reflects that might be the reason why Yūma looked so confident a few days prior. Kageura rejoices when the stage is revealed to be Cityscape D, welcoming the prospect of a match fought largely at close quarters. Kitazoe and Nire worry about Ema being hindered, but the Sniper replies that he will enter the mall not to fall behind Tamakoma Second, an attitude Kageura likes. Kageura spawns in the north-west of the map, which turns out to have a nighttime setting. He proceeds towards the mall and rapidly climbs to the roof with Mantis. Kitazoe, who spawned inside the mall, heads towards him and warns him that Murakami is on his tail. The Gunner meets up with him on the sixth floor as Tatsuya Kuruma reaches his own teammate. A firefight begins which the two Attackers soon join. Though Kageura Unit appears to have the upper hand at first, the tides turn when Kuruma shifts into Full Attack. Kageura chooses to fall back, surprising Kitazoe. They take shelter inside a restaurant, the narrow space preventing Kuruma from using his pincer attack, but just as they seem to be regaining the upper hand, Taichi Betsuyaku turns off the lights in the mall. Murakami's black Kogetsu becomes invisible in the darkness, but Kageura manages to dodge it thanks to his Side Effect; however, not even the latter can save him from a slash synchronized with Betsuyaku turning the light back on while his visual support is active, and although he survives the attack, he is severely injured and loses control of his left arm. Kageura protests when he perceives that Murakami wants to keep coming after him. However, Betsuyaku bails out moments later, and the fighters move outside the restaurant just as Hyuse and Yūma arrive. The duo from Suzunari First moves away while Kageura Unit and Tamakoma Second prepare to clash. Hyuse walls Kitazoe off from Kageura with Escudo, turning the battle into a two versus one. As the opponents approach, Kageura perceives Hyuse's incoming bullets, countering their subsequent attacks and retaliating with Mantis. His confidence is quickly shattered when he fails to block the half of bullets that Hyuse delayed, which destroy his legs. Kageura's trion body begins to crack. Kitazoe breaks through a wall to cover him, but he is quickly dispatched. Moments before bailing out, Kageura rolls into the hole the Gunner blasted into the ground to escape, preventing Tamakoma Second from dealing the finishing blow and thus giving the point to Suzunari First. At the end of the battle, he listens to Inukai's commentary in silence. When Ema asks if he is all right, Kitazoe explains that he was on edge due to the result of the match affecting the Sniper's participation in the away mission. Kageura proclaims that it is not over yet and that it has been a long time since he had something worth fighting for. Round Eight On March 5, Kageura Unit faces off against Ōji Unit and Azuma Unit in the day division of rank battles. Azuma Unit wins the battle, which took place in Exhibition Hall, with a final score of 4-3-3, after Okudera's distraction allows Azuma to snipe Kageura. References Category:Plot Category:Masato Kageura